Aston Rowant NNR

Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve lies on the steep north-west slope of the Chiltern Hills, within the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The reserve covers 159 hectares and most of it is a Site of Special Scientific Interest graded at the highest level. It stretches across two counties, with the larger part in Oxfordshire and smaller sections in Buckinghamshire. The landscape includes chalk grassland, juniper scrub and hanging beechwoods. Red kites, reintroduced in 1989, now circle overhead. The reserve protects some of England’s rarest chalk-grassland plants. At least seven kinds of orchid grow here, along with the Chiltern gentian and other wildflowers such as eyebright, scabious and yellow-wort. Over thirty butterfly species have been recorded, including the Adonis blue, chalkhill blue and silver-spotted skipper. Muntjac, roe deer and brown hares move through the grass, while the endangered hazel dormouse finds shelter in the scrub. Visitors walk along the escarpment paths that cross the grassland and beechwoods. In spring and summer the slopes glow with orchids and gentians. Red kites glide above the treetops, and the chalk-cutting of the M40 motorway exposes layers of Coniacian chalk beneath the reserve. The motorway’s route once sparked debates that strengthened conservation efforts across the country.